A Fatal Disease

How can I pray for someone when the physician says their condition is terminal? Should I just accept the physician’s diagnosis as true and pray for courage, comfort, an easy death, strength for the family etc?

I am going to pray for healing for this person. First of all, the physician’s knowledge is human knowledge. He is going by what usually happens. Its the best he can do, and he is giving his best. He believes in being honest, and I don’t blame him for that. At the same time the physician isn’t the final authority. I am reminded of the verse in the gospel of Matthew (Matt 28:18). Right before Jesus tells his apostles to “go and make disciples in all nations”, he tells them “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

If I really believe what Jesus said in this quotation, then I have to accept that He is the final authority over my friend’s disease. When I look at how Jesus treated disease, I am not aware of a case where he turned away anyone who came to him. He didn’t even turn away the people who brought someone else to him. And he cared. He wept when his friend died because he identified with grief–even though he knew he was about to raise this person from the dead.

I am going to bring my friend to Jesus, and trust Jesus for a complete healing. What will I do if my friend isn’t healed? I will acknowledge I don’t know everything, yet Jesus knows all. Jesus also can only choose what is ultimately best for my friend and everyone involved, and I may not be able to understand that option even if Jesus himself explained it to me. My mind is human, not divine.

There is a sense in which we are all terminal anyway. We all are going to die, its just a matter of when, and how, and how that all works out is Jesus plan for us. I believe its a perfect plan, but I could write another whole post of that subject.

Anyway, I am praying for complete healing for my friend, trusting in the ability, perfect knowledge and perfect goodness of Jesus. Then I will leave my friend in the hands of Jesus. There is no better place to be.